The Seahawks made an expected roster move Monday, placing tight end Greg Olsen on injured reserve. They then replaced his spot on the 53-player roster by activating defensive tackle Damon “Snacks” Harrison off the practice squad.
Olsen suffered a plantar-fascia foot injury late in the 28-21 victory Thursday over Arizona and could miss the rest of the regular season.
New IR rules this season require Olsen to miss at least three games. But any player on IR this season can return after three weeks.
Though there has been some speculation that the injury could mean the 35-year-old tight end’s career is over, Olsen took to Twitter on Friday to state: “I refuse to allow this to be my final moment. I will find a way to finish on my feet!”
Olsen signed a one-year deal in February worth up to $7 million with $5.5 million guaranteed.
He has 23 receptions for 224 yards and one touchdown in starting eight games this season and playing 62% of Seattle’s offensive snaps.
The Seahawks have three other tight ends on the roster in Will Dissly, Jacob Hollister and rookie Colby Parkinson and will rely more heavily on those three.
Parkinson, a fourth-round draft choice out of Stanford, has been active for only one game but figures to be part of the game plan each week. Seattle typically has three tight ends active.
Harrison had been on the practice squad since signing with the Seahawks on Oct. 7 and was elevated to the game-day roster each of the past two games to serve as a third defensive tackle following an ankle injury to Bryan Mone.
But Harrison could no longer be elevated and had to be on the 53-player roster to appear in future games, and this allows him to play next Monday against the Eagles in Philadelphia. Tom Pelissero of The NFL Network reported that both the Packers and Ravens recently tried to sign Harrison to their 53-player rosters off Seattle’s practice squad but that he stayed put. Now that Harrison is on Seattle’s 53 other teams can no longer approach him about signing.
Mone can come off IR following the Eagles game.
Seattle also placed two practice-squad players on injured reserve — running back Bo Scarbrough and defensive end/tight end Stephen Sullivan.
Scarbrough suffered a hamstring injury against Arizona. He rushed for 31 yards on six carries after being elevated off the practice squad.
Seattle, though, should get back to full strength at tailback with Chris Carson expected to return this week after missing the past four games because of a foot injury, and with Carlos Hyde having returned against Arizona.
Sullivan played in just one game this year, against the 49ers in Week 8, and his injury is undisclosed (players on the practice squad are not listed on injury reports during the week).
The Seahawks also signed center Brad Lundblade to the practice squad Monday. Lundblade went undrafted out of Oklahoma State in 2018 and was signed as a free agent by the Seahawks in May 2018 before being released. He has since spent time with the Bengals, Panthers and Jets, waived by New York in September in the cutdown to 53. He adds depth at a position that has been hit hard by injury.
Seattle over the weekend also re-signed cornerback DeMarkus Acy to the practice squad.
Seattle still has two openings available on the practice squad, with 14 of the maximum 16 spots filled.
No fans for Giants, Jets games
The Seahawks announced Monday that they will play their next two home games — Dec. 6 against the Giants and Dec. 13 against the Jets — without spectators due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Seattle has not had fans at any game this season at Lumen Field. Seattle has only one other home game following the contest against the Jets, on Dec. 27 against the Rams. Seattle also could hold playoff games at Lumen Field.
In a statement, the team said: “Due to the current case counts of COVID-19 in our state, we will continue playing without fans in attendance at our home games on Dec. 6 (vs. N.Y. Giants) and Dec. 13 (vs. N.Y. Jets). We are continuing to work closely with local public health and government officials and are committed to following their lead to keep our community safe. We will keep fans informed as decisions are made for our Dec. 27 home game and beyond. We continue to urge all fans to remain vigilant with physical distancing, mask wearing and following all local guidelines.”
Nineteen of the 32 NFL teams have had some fans at games this season but none has allowed more than 32% capacity (Dallas).
The opinions expressed in reader comments are those of the author only and do not reflect the opinions of The Seattle Times.